Monday, 17 October 2011

NTSB Continues Investigation into Reno Airshow Plane Crash

The National Transportation Safety Board is continuing its investigation into a deadly plane crash at an air show in Reno, Nevada in September that killed 11 people. The investigation is specifically focusing on whether a small piece of the plane's tail assembly separated from the aircraft just before the crash.

According to witnesses at the National Championship Air Races, a piece of the airframe separated from the plane while the plane was engaged in aerial stunts. The National Transportation Safety Board has already looked at photographic evidence that also confirms the loss of the part.

The loss of the trim tab, the agency believes, likely caused the pilot to lose control. The aircraft jerked upward suddenly, before it nosedived to an area near one of the grandstands. That unleashed excessive gravitational forces, causing the pilot to lose consciousness. Photographs of the plane just before the crash do not show the pilot in the cockpit, indicating that the pilot had likely passed out. Organizers of the Reno show where the crash occurred have also indicated that mechanical malfunctioning of the plane as the main contributing factor in the crash.

The National Transportation Safety Board investigators have already finished combing the crash site, and have also gathered information about the health of the pilot and the physical condition of the plane. It will be several months before National Transportation Safety Board completes its investigation and presents its report. The Federal Aviation Administration, as well as the Reno Air Racing Association, which organized the show, are participating in the investigation.

What Reno air show plane crash has really underscored to California plane crash lawyers are the increasing dangers associated with air shows. These air races have become very popular, and now draw hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. Unfortunately, for many air show organizers, the line between providing thrills and reckless operations has blurred, with the result that many spectators may be placed in danger.